Gaming Hell

This week's Arcade Archives release is... Fighter & Attacker (Namco, 1992)... Or at least, it was supposed to be.

As has happened a few times with Namco games, this one has not been released outside of Japan, so the Japanese storefront links are provided below:

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If you do go for the Japanese release, bear in mind only the Japanese ROM, titled F/A, is included.

This one stings a little- I was looking forward to giving this a try, and it's also the 10th anniversary celebeation game for Arcade Archives, so not being able to get it properly over here is a bit disappointing. It's also a notable title for never being given a home port until now and for having an absolutely incredible Shinji Hosoe and Takayuki Aihara soundtrack, so I'm sure a few people were looking forward to this. I was waiting on this release to dig into the game but, well, that didn't happen so, uh, you'll have to ask someone else about the game itself, I don't shmup so well. Fortunately, making a Japanese account for both PSN and Switch is fairly easy, and I've linked some guides (with pictures!) to help you out. Although the PSN guide is specifically for PS4 (could be worse, one of the guides I found used PS3 screenshots, whoof).

Now, in the past I've tried to avoid speculating on why this sort of thing happens with Namco games because I feel a little responsible for the perception around what happened with Marvel Land... This one, though, I can at least give a solid guess because it seems really obvious- Fighter & Attacker has 16 (!) playable aircraft based on real planes, including the F-14D Tomcat. Whenever Sega rereleases After Burner II, they have to get a license for using that plane from Northrop Grumman, so perhaps this made Bandai Namco baulk (and at this point it does really seem like them- it's almost always their games, and they seem really antsy about anything remotely copyright-infringey).

Fortunately, I know what you people want to hear.

OK, OK, just joking! I couldn't resist posting the iDOLM@STER remix. Here's the Fighter & Attacker soundtrack for you to enjoy~

Anyway, I know this is disappointing, but as a reminder, don't shoot the messenger. I've never had any luck in contacting Hamster myself (I've sent emails a few times about the dozen-or-so ACA games MIA on EU PSN) so I do wish they were more transparent, but you're better shouting at them, not me. I'm only little! You can't be mad at me!!

This week's Arcade Archives release is... Tutankham (Konami, 1982)

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Only the Konami ROM is included, not the Stern version. Preference Options include allowing players to share the same controller rather than keep switching in two-player mode, and switch the oreintation of the directional controls, probably for players on TVs who can't flip it over to play in tate mode.

The ancient tomb calls to you, adventurer, to find the treasures lying within... But beware, for the path is laden with enemies, threats and traps the likes of which you have never seen before, in particular holes in the walls that spawn vicious animals one after another. As a well-prepared explorer, though, you've got some things in your satchel to help- a laser blast that fires to both sides, and a flash bomb that clears the area to give you a moment's respite. Exploring the tomb itself is another matter, though- you'll need to grab keys to get through locked doors, but you can only carry one at a time, and there might be multiple doors to unlock in each part of the tomb. Be brave, adventurer, and you too may see the treasure waiting at the end of the four-maze gauntlet!

This is a pretty interesting maze-chase game with a few little quirks to make it stand out. First, your laser can only hit to the side of you, not up or down, so your positioning relative to enemies is really important, especially since this plays by Pac-Man rules where the only way to stop moving is to rest against a wall. Second, some mazes have multiple doors to unlock but only being able to carry one key means you have to do a bit of back and forth to successfully reach the end. There's even an 'open' space in one of the mazes, an unusual sight for a maze game like this. I think one thing worth pointing out here is the presentation- some of the sounds and the sprites feel less like an early Konami game and more like something you'd see from American arcade developers like Midway or Williams, especially the sounds you get when you die which is straight out of Robotron: 2084, it feels! It takes a bit of getting used to the controls, especially attacking enemies, but this is another early Konami game worth a look.

By the way, there were plenty of contemporary home ports of this one, but you might be familiar with this one if you were one of those doomed souls who played Microsoft Game Room, as this was one of the games available there. It was also on Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits on the Nintendo DS by M2 but, for some reason, the US version renames the game Horror Maze. Very odd! To wrap up, Stern put together a strange flyer with an interview with the player character, who is apparently called Tutankham. Or Tut, for short.

This week'a Arcade Archives release is... Rastan Saga (Taito, 1987)

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Both the Japanese and International ROMs are included. The International ROM removes the story sequences between each round (which were in English anyway!) and has some differences with the time-up enemies as explained on arcade-history.

"I used to be a thief and murderer. Otherwise, I could not survive such difficult times. Sit beside me and listen to my stories of adventure" says the wisened King Rastan on his throne, as he regales to you one of his many adventures. Before he became king, he made a deal with the princess of the kingdom of Ceim: in exchange for the head of the dragon rampaging across the land, Rastan would receive all the treasures of the empire. However, legions of monsters, warriors and all sorts of other foes stand in Rastan's way, but he'll cleave his way through with his sword and other weapons he can pick up along the way such as a morning star, axe and flame-spewing magical sword, plus magical items that protect him from harm. This, then, is the chronological history of a barbarian who dared to challenge.

At least a few people were surprised this game hadn't already shown up in Arcade Archives, but it's true, until now the only Rastan action we've seen via ACA is his cameo in Champion Wrestler, but here he is! One of the more famous non-cute Taito arcade games, Rastan Saga sees you play through six rounds of hack-and-slash platforming action as the barbarian Rastan. He's a pretty good swordsman, so as well as strikes ahead of him, he can stab above him and below him from a jump from that Link guy from that one NES sequel, plus he has a higher jump by holding the joystick up as you press the button. Each round's split into two areas, an outdoor area and an interior where the boss lies in wait at the end, with all sorts of obstacles and threats like rooms full of fire that have to be navigated by ropes, quicksand you have to jump out of, spike traps and more. It's about an even split between fighting and platforming, so be sure to master his jumps!

I won't lie, I'm really bad at Rastan Saga. The game is tough- enemies are relentless and numerous, and the platform challenges are pretty difficult, especially if you're still getting used to the jumps which feel slightly stiff. It also does that classic Taito dick move of cutting off continues on the final round which I've never been a fan of. Where it absolutely excells is presentation- when it comes to non-cute Taito games, this is absolutely the style I think of. There's not a whole lot of wild animation outside of Rastan's elaborate sword-swing, but the graphics are super-detailed and striking with lots of great little details (the walls in the fire rooms seem to glow from the flames!) and the outdoor area theme, Aggressive World, is legit one of my all-time favourite Taito songs, perfectly setting the mood and atmosphere. If you're up to the challenge and haven't played the arcade version before, good luck!

And yes, Taito knows how close it is to Conan. I dunno, this gave me a chuckle.

This week's Arcade Archives release is... Numan Athletics (Namco, 1993)

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Both the Japanese and English ROM are included. For controls, you can play the game with the original three-button layout or use the left stick for building up power (so you can turn the game into Daley Thompson's Decathlon), plus there are rapid-fire options if you want to cheat or give your hands a rest. In the Preference Settings, you can change which character you default to in single-player mode, allowing Harry (P2), Masaemon (P3) and Bongo (P4) to be used regardless of controller port. Finally, Caravan Mode and Hi Score Mode work a little differently here- Caravan Mode automatically skips name-entry for world records and the how-to demonstrations so you have to see how many events you can cram into five minutes, while Hi Score Mode lets you select any event, essentially serving as a makeshift practice mode against the default qualifying scores.

The yearly Numan Athletics are here at last! The Numans are super-powered humans with abilities far surpassing our own, and so while we're content with things like throwing a javelin and hopping over hurdles, these turbo-charged athletes- Sharon L'Halles from France, Harry Boffin from the USA, Masaemon Nakamura from Japan and Bongo Tembo from Kenya- are ready to outrun dragsters, wall-kick off buildings and stop express trains with their bare hands for the thrill of breaking world records and entertaining the crowds. There's eight wild events between you and being crowned the winner of this year's competition, can you keep up? With an easy three-button set-up, if you've got the knack for button-mashing and timing, you'll do great. Now get out there, the finals are about to begin!

The conclusion of Namco Month is a doozy, almost certainly one of the most often-requested Arcade Archives rereleases based on how often it's come up in conversation, Namco's Numan Athletics is, in my estimation, one of the greatest Track & Field-style games ever made. Yes, there was a sequel, Mach Breakers, but I feel they're both as excellent as each other, and the first game just about pips past the finish line first for me. The super-human theme is such a perfect fir for a game like this, allowing for outrageous and over-the-top events but also keeping play very simple, focusing on button-mashing for events like the Turbo Dash and Non-Stop Rock Chop, timing and reaction like with Tower Topper, Interceptor and Numan Sniper, and a bit of both for Missile Toss, Vs. Express and Niagara Jump.

All the events are also explained via an in-game demonstration so new players won't be totally lost, and the presentation is just so excellent throughout, with lots of charming animation, little details like the dragster you outrun and the animals running away from the Missile Toss, and a phenomenal breakbeat soundtrack by Nobuyoshi Sano. It's the complete package, and an absolute blast to play with friends as it supports up to four players, so I'm so happy more people get to try this game out! The one area of concern is, of course, the controls- the mashing is pretty intense and some of the events like Tower Topper have very strict timing, so you'll need to practice, but also please take care of your hands. You might find an arcade stick or resting your controller on a flat surface will provide a more comfortable experience, although being able to rotate the Left Stick is a nice concessson too, just don't do it with your palm! Gaming Hell doesn't want you to hurt yourself in the pursuit of fun. To sum things up, to me Numan Athletics is one of those games that reminds me just how great arcade games are, why I love them so much, and why having Arcade Archives around to bring classics like these home is wonderful.

If you'd like to read more words about how bloody brilliant Numan Athletics is, then please take a look at Kimimi's excellent article on the subject which perfectly describes the game less as a sports game, but a party game, ,very true. Oh, and, er, I wrote about both this game and its sequel, Mach Breakers so read that too if you like! I've actually updated it to add a few things, so take a look if it's been a while.